Foreign Grocery Friday: The Hallulla Bread of Chile

When we travel, one of our favorite things to do is to pop into a local grocery store and check out the food products and candies we'd never find anywhere else. So we're trying out this new feature, Foreign Grocery Friday, where each week we'll feature some of our (and your) favorite overseas treats. Got a recommendation? Let us know!

Warning: Celiacs, Atkins Dieters and carb haters look away now!

Hallulla. It's so close to "hallelujah" and coincidentally that's exactly how we feel upon finding the round, flat breads of this name in Chilean grocery stores. Chileans love bread, and there's typically no shortage of fresh baked varieties for the taking. Still our heart goes out to Hallulla (actually pronounced "ah ew yeh") for its satisfying taste and reliability.

Got a couple coins in your pocket and a rumbling stomach? Hallulla is there for you. Got a few paper bills in your wallet? Pick up some ham and cheese slices to complete what is nearly a staple in the Chilean diet.

Now imagine this with cheese and meat

The taste: It's a nice, buttery denseness that can go a bit on the dry side, but it pairs so perfectly with sandwich fixings or jam that it seems the ideal base bread. They're obviously best when still hot from the oven, as we scored at a Lider just last night.

We especially enjoy using hallullas as a quick snack sandwich, paired with some slices of cheese and meat also bought from the grocery store. Easy to serve, easy to eat, easy to keep in a hotel room minibar fridge. Backpacker travelers could live on these for, like, a dollar a day.

The price: From 75 pesos to 95 Chilean pesos per piece. That equates to $0.16 to $0.20 USD.

Where to find it: Within Santiago, we most often scoop some into a plastic bag at grocery stores like Lider, Jumbo, and the massive Tottus (head to the very back of the store, to a display like the one pictured below). Small markets and coffee shops often make their own or bring some in from local bakeries to sell.

If you'd like to share some of your foreign grocery finds, we'd love love love to see them. Send 'em on over via email here and snack on, my friends.